Degree in Computer Science

livewire1 · June 2003

I need to here it straight from the horses mouth.
I am 28 yrs. old and at a dead end job. I have half of my A plus cert. and started to see what kind of jobs are out there. As I search I noticed alot of companies wanted you to have a Bachelors degree in Computer Science. I am going to school this fall. My question is this: is it going to be necessary for an IT job in the future with a degree or even if you have a degree is it still going to be hard to find a job.

Thanks for the comments.

bellboy · June 2003

it's funny you should say that.

i applied for several jobs recently and hoped my experience in the industry and my collection of certs so-far would outway the fact that i neither have hnc/d or degree. one job i was disqualified from as it was an internal-trawl and i applied as an outsider, but was turned down for the other because i was underqualified.

i am considering taking evening class for an hnc in computers or an open university degree in the same. the hnc seems to be a more challenging course, but at the end of the day the degree will carry more weight.

i honest cannot answer your question. but if i decide to take the degree and complete it in four years, it would be nice to think that i would still be a requirement in the industry.

RussS · June 2003

I have a few friends who have degrees and from some very interesting discussions it appears that they are very useful for 'software' jobs or consultant positions, but when it somes to hardware and admin they can sometimes be seen as a disadvantage. I guess it really depends on the job market - if there are few positions then advertising for someone with a degree AND certs should cut the numbers of aplicants down to just a few. To be honest I have used this in the hospitality industry when I was desperate for a senior staff member and didn't have time to wade through hundreds of applications.

Drakonblayde · July 2003

I'm personally pursuing an associate's degree at the moment. By the time I graduate, I should have a nice alphabet soup of certs to go along with it, along with a couple years working tech support. Hopefully, that will allow me to get a job that will allow me to support myself again. Once I have that secured, I'll continue my education by pursuing a bachelor's and masters (and further certification)

sir_creamy_ · November 2007

RussS wrote:

I have a few friends who have degrees and from some very interesting discussions it appears that they are very useful for 'software' jobs or consultant positions, but when it somes to hardware and admin they can sometimes be seen as a disadvantage.

Absolute rubbish. Your friends are witch doctors. A B.CS provides you with a strong foundational knowledge of the theory of operating systems, networks, and distributed systems - all of which are vital for a career in network administration. The only possible disadvantage is that you may be seen as overqualified for a low-level position. That is, if you've earned a degree and your goal in life is to be a Wal-Mart greeter, then I'm afraid you won't be donning the blue vest any time soon, my friend.

A degree does not close doors, it opens them.

crap I forgot my old pwd · November 2007

Agreed. In our curriculum, we have to take hardware classes as well. We had to build a processor and memory from the gate level up, work with hardware, set up databases, learn multiple OS platforms, build computers, and the list goes on. So I really don't see how CS majors can be frowned upon for hardware-related and admin things.

int80h · November 2007

IT is a very broad field. It ranges from Assistant Floppy Formatter at Bob's PC Hut all the way up to Director of Extraterrestrial Autonomous Robot Development at NASA.

There are roles in IT for people of all educational backgrounds, from a GED all the way up to multiple PHDs.

A more appropriate question to ask would be "I want to do IT job X. What are the educational requirements for job X?"

JDMurray · November 2007

Look at the IT posting on the popular job Web sites (Monster, Dice, HotJobs, etc.). See how many of them are asking for at least a Bachelors degree. See how many of those want the degree to be specifically in CS or EE. I think you'll see that having an undergraduate degree is practically a necessity for finding high-tech employment with a "good" company.

You know what's the best thing about a college degree? No recertification needed!

Netstudent · November 2007

I have noticed that all type of "career" oriented IT jobs seek CS majors. Software, hardware, WAN, LAN, development, DBA. You can go to dice, monster, or the like and you will find this. I think this is because a CS major is very respected. If you go to a 4 year university and graduate with a CS degree, that shows high proficiency is mathematics, logic, and software programming. A lot of CS degrees also include telco and networking classes as well. It's more programming than anything but it is still very respectable in any sector of IT. I have found that as far as college grads go, CS majors are usually at the top of the food chain.

itdaddy · November 2007

get a 4 year degree if you can and then certs; or whichever but a degree is needed
in big cities most of the time. in small towns you might be able to get a big networking engineering job. in our local teleco we have a guy no 4 year degree but he is a ccnp status and is head of engineering. makes 80K a year....

so i face the same thing. all you see out there for the really pro jobs are this

MCSE/MCSA
CCNA/CCNP
and BS degree is preferred.

and they pay you big bucks!
but if not a 2 year degree and a few certs and few years or so or experience
will get you 35k to 40k tops I think
to get paid min 45k and above you have to get the 4 year degree; it is like an unspoken law
like you can go 62mph in certain zone but it posts 55mph. get it!

my 3.4 cents worth

candycorn · November 2007

I'm *almost* tempted to just lie about having a BS/CS (or what its called) to land a big I.T. job. Of course I probably will never do it, because that risks getting fired and taking away jobs from people that actually earned their degree. I wish that school was less expensive....

Thats my negative cent. Don't lie kids!

Anyone have any horror stories?

dtlokee · November 2007

candycorn wrote:

I'm *almost* tempted to just lie about having a BS/CS (or what its called) to land a big I.T. job. Of course I probably will never do it, because that risks getting fired and taking away jobs from people that actually earned their degree. I wish that school was less expensive....

Thats my negative cent. Don't lie kids!

Anyone have any horror stories?

Yeah don't do that. most employers will find out when they contact the college you graduated from.

As for a horror story, I just interviewed somone for an instructor position whi had CCNA/NP and a few VP exams passed, asked him "if you have a switch and interfaces 1-12 are in vlan 10, 13-24 are in vlan 20, how many broadcast domains would you have?" answer : "I don't know." That was the end of the intervew.

Netstudent · November 2007

Lets see, VLAN10 + VLAN20 = 30 BROADCAST DOMAINS!!!! :P

blargoe · November 2007

Everyone knows you multiply vlan10 and vlan20 together for a total of 200. Gosh.

Goldmember · November 2007

My 2 cents...

Get a degree in IT or Computer SCience.

Many of the employers say they are looking for "a degree in Computer Science, EE, or related field"
I think a Bachelors in IT is related and IMHO is better if you plan on doing only IT work.

You know why I think a BSIT is better then BSCS?

I was a student at a 4 year university with Computer Science as my major...
I am a working Network Admin/Engineer and I saw absolutely no applicable reason to be taking all those computer science courses. Assembly Language Programming, Calculus 3, Chemistry, and the list goes on and on....and I passed them all too!

I decided to switch to BSIT at Western Governors University Online, which I have done research and this university is very well respected by companies such as Google and Microsoft. The program uses certs and credit towards degree AND you don't gave to do all the computer science classes which are absolutely unnecessary.

Some guy once told me he was glad he went to college to get his Computer Science degree because he learned how to use Unix. lol
I told him I can learn Unix without getting a Computer Science degree, let alone any degree.

I was studying for my CCIE and realized something...you could be the best IT person in your field and no have degree.
The major universities are taking awhile to catch on to the importance of BSIT degree and its relevancy to modern computing.

The computer science degree is too "programming-centric" and takes away from what IT really is.
IF you get down to brass tax, IT is not programming in many ways. There are many things to learn specific to IT which don't cross over to programming.
In my mind a Computer Science degree doesn't cover enough IT related tasks and problems.
I feel like I had to relearn IT over again after taking loads and loads of computer science courses.

I wish I would have started my IT degree 4 years ago instead of computer science.
The only reason I went for Computer Science is because of the prestige and it was the only degree offered locally.

Good luck to you on whatever you decide.

In the end, I think most employers if they are worth anything, will take an IT degree with relevant experience just as much as a computer science student.

Take for example:

If you see a resume with 2 CCIE's and one has a BSIT and the other has a BSCS will it really make a difference??
In my mind it wouldn't unless you were hiring for somebody who would do programming as well.

The bottomline is get the degree, if you feel its necessary, and then move onto the field of choice.

sir_creamy_ · November 2007

Goldmember wrote:

The computer science degree is too "programming-centric" and takes away from what IT really is.

I whole-heartedly agree. Unfortunately, implementation is an excellent way to assess one's understanding of theoretical concepts so I guess that's why Universities shove programming assignments down one's throat.

JDMurray · November 2007

Goldmember wrote:

If you see a resume with 2 CCIE's and one has a BSIT and the other has a BSCS will it really make a difference??
In my mind it wouldn't unless you were hiring for somebody who would do programming as well.

The difference is the BSIT sees the network as hardware devices running software that must be configured. The BSCS see the network as software that is merely hosted by the hardware that is running it. Understanding what the software does, how it does it, and how it was designed and built is necessary for a complete understanding of any computer-based system. Software engineering (not just "programming") is a necessary part of that learning. The CCIE with the BSCS has that learning. If s/he also has an BS/MSEE then all the better! (The CS/EE is a fantastic double-major, by the way.)

Darthn3ss · November 2007

sir_creamy_ wrote:

. That is, if you've earned a degree and your goal in life is to be a Wal-Mart greeter, then I'm afraid you won't be donning the blue vest any time soon, my friend.

Sadly, that'll probably never happen. walmart dropped the blue vest in exchange for a navy/blue shirt and kahki pants.

Degree in Computer Science

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